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Health

Properties of the dead sea

, medical expert
Last reviewed: 06.07.2025
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The Dead Sea. How many legends, parables and wonderful tales are connected with this place. One of them says that at its bottom lie two biblical cities, Sodom and Gomorrah, which the Lord destroyed with fire for their wicked behavior.

This lake is unique and holds several titles: the lowest lake on the planet (about 400 m below sea level), ranks first on Earth in terms of salt concentration in the water. This makes life impossible for animals and fish, only some bacteria live in it - hence the name Dead Sea. The uniqueness of this miracle of nature is also given by the properties of the Dead Sea.

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Useful properties of the Dead Sea

The Dead Sea can rightfully be included in the list of the seven man-made Wonders of the World. The waters of the lake are so saturated with salt and minerals that it can no longer be called sea water. It is a viscous, slightly oily, high-density solution. Due to this feature, it is difficult for a person to walk in the water, but he can happily lie on the surface and read a newspaper or play chess with a neighbor...

The beneficial properties of the Dead Sea were known in ancient times. Knowing the healing properties of its water and mud, the ancient Romans and Hindus built their mud clinics on the shores of the lake. Legends have reached our days that Cleopatra herself, having learned about the effect that the use of mud leads to, happily used it for her rejuvenation.

The solid conglomerate obtained in the process of evaporation is the purest composition of salt, all kinds of minerals and microelements. The percentage of salts in the waters of this sea is approximately ten times higher than in the World Ocean. In addition to them, the water of the lake is rich in elements of almost the entire periodic table. The beneficial properties of the Dead Sea are manifested by ions of such substances that are simply irreplaceable in the work of our body:

  • Magnesium. It is also called an antidepressant. It is able to raise the overall tone of cells and the entire human body as a whole. It has anti-allergic properties.
  • Bromine. Has antibacterial properties. Excellent antidepressant. It is thanks to this substance and its vapors that the vacationer gets a relaxing effect.
  • Calcium. It is a storehouse of useful properties: strengthening of soft, connective, bone tissues; ability to accelerate the process of wound healing, participates in the stabilization of metabolic processes, has high antibacterial properties.
  • Sodium chloride. Its percentage content in water is 15-20%, while sea water of the World Ocean contains up to 90% of this substance. Effectively normalizes the body's own cell pressure.
  • Sodium is energy, and in tandem with chlorine it perfectly controls the water-salt balance in the human body.
  • Potassium. Promotes high diffusion of nutrients, providing the cell with everything it needs for its full functioning. Only on the shores of this unique reservoir is the extraction (the percentage of potassium in the salt water is approximately 20 times higher than in ordinary sea water) and production of potassium salt established.

The composition of the lake solution is quite close to the composition and its percentage ratio with the plasma and lymph of the human body. This already speaks for itself. It is simply impossible to overestimate the unique properties of the Dead Sea.

Healing properties of the Dead Sea

The Dead Sea is a real health resort: a clinic, a pharmacy and a resort all at once. The healing properties of the Dead Sea have served as an impetus for the rapid development of a multifunctional infrastructure that has emerged on the shores of this wonderful lake. The properties of the Dead Sea are akin to a panacea for all diseases. Even a simple bath in its waters can significantly improve your overall health.

If a person suffers from such diseases as arthrosis, gout or arthritis, which are based on the "salt deposition" in the joints, water procedures will significantly alleviate the patient's condition. This is physically explainable. The concentration of salt in our body is significantly higher than in the waters of the lake, therefore, salts from the human body move to an environment with a lower concentration.

The air itself absorbs the healing properties of the Dead Sea. It is absolutely clean (within a radius of many hundreds of kilometers there is not a single large technical production). Dry and hot (steamed and dried by the surrounding desert, humidity 25%). The air itself is filled with evaporated ions of salts and minerals. Inhaling deeply, a person receives excellent natural inhalation, which will be useful for patients suffering from diseases of the upper respiratory tract and ENT organs.

But not only water and air are healing. Silt deposits, specially raised from the sea bottom, also have a powerful healing effect. They can be called a mineral-microelement bomb. Such mud is an excellent sedative and anti-inflammatory agent that works at the hormonal level. The mud of this lake effectively treats a fairly wide range of diseases of various medical orientations.

  • Dermatology: psoriasis, erythroderma, mycoses of 1-2 stages, lichen planus, ichthyosis, scleroderma and many other skin diseases.
  • Gynecological problems: inflammatory processes and so on.
  • Respiratory system: bronchitis, asthma, chronic rhinitis and sinusitis, pharyngitis, laryngitis, tonsillitis and much more.
  • Diseases of joints and connective and bone tissues: polyarthritis, rheumatism, bursitis, osteochondrosis and others.
  • The relaxing properties of water and its vapors help calm the nerves, relieve stress, and alleviate depression.
  • Gastrointestinal tract: gastric ulcer and duodenal ulcer, colitis, liver and urinary tract dysfunction, gastritis, intestinal dysbacteriosis…
  • And many other diseases.

A special microworld with its own microclimate. In summer, thermometer readings rise above 45 °C. Such heat causes the lake waters to evaporate intensely, forming a milky fog above the surface, visible even to the naked eye. This suspension is an excellent natural filter, capable of significantly delaying harsh ultraviolet radiation, significantly reducing the risk of sunburn.

But everything should be in moderation. You shouldn't spend too much time in the water, 20 minutes is enough. Then you should move to the shore and wash off the remaining salt under clean fresh water from the shower. Doctors recommend doing only three or four such baths during the day.

But visiting baths filled with water with the properties of the Dead Sea is not recommended for everyone. People suffering from Parkinson's disease and schizophrenia, prone to epileptic seizures, with a history of AIDS, tuberculosis of lung tissue, with dysfunction of the liver, bladder and kidneys should refrain from visiting them. Those who have recently suffered a heart attack or stroke should also refrain.

Properties of Dead Sea Salts

Rapa – there is no other name for the water from the endorheic lake, fed by the Jordan River and underground mineral springs; 1 dm3 ( one liter) of water solution contains approximately 330 – 370 grams of various salts. The hot climate and powerful evaporation make the water of this lake maximally concentrated. Due to such physical features, it is practically impossible to drown in the Dead Sea; the water itself pushes a person to the surface.

But it is not only this uniqueness that has made the Salt Lake so popular. The salts found in it in high concentrations make the water truly healing. First of all, these are chloride compounds of such elements as magnesium, potassium, calcium, bromine and sodium.

Today, there are many factories, large and small companies in Israel focused on the extraction and production of salts from the lake waters. On its basis, both the product itself and creams, mousses, and other cosmetic products are produced. Now it is not a problem to buy this product in any pharmacy, even in the most remote corner of the world. The effect of using such cosmetics is simply stunning. Using the properties of Dead Sea salts, doctors recommend baths and rubbing with mineralized salts, peeling, wraps, and compresses with its participation. Warm salt baths for hands and feet are also effective.

A technology has been developed that allows obtaining monoelements such as bromine, potassium, sodium and others, which are in high demand in both the pharmaceutical and chemical industries.

Useful properties of Dead Sea salt

Yam a melekh. This is how the name of the lake sounds in Hebrew – Sea of Salt – a very accurate name.

The beneficial properties of Dead Sea salt have been in great demand since ancient times among Roman patricians, Babylonian kings and queens. It was considered to be the "apple of rejuvenation". But in addition to its excellent cosmetic effect, sea mineralized salt has a healing effect on the human body.

Baths with its participation at a temperature of 37-38 degrees have an excellent healing effect on the skin (lichen, allergic manifestations, psoriasis, eczema and fungal manifestations of the disease - this is not a complete list of diseases that can be treated). The effect of salt baths is so powerful that they are recognized by doctors around the world as the only non-drug remedy in the treatment of psoriasis.

The stability is pleasing. The beneficial properties of Dead Sea salt are not lost, depending on whether the medicinal baths are taken directly at the place of extraction, or this happens in a SPA salon, or at home.

To take baths at home that are identical to the properties of the Dead Sea, you only need to dilute sea salt from this lake, which you can easily buy at any pharmacy. Make a solution: 0.5 - 1 kg of salt per hundred liters of water. The procedure should be taken for no more than 20 - 25 minutes, after which rinse the body with warm fresh water (use a shower), without taking any additional cosmetics (soap, shampoo, gel, etc.). After the treatment, give yourself at least 30 minutes to rest.

Properties of Dead Sea Mud

Over the thousands of years of existence of this pearl of the Middle East, more than a hundred meters of alluvial sedimentary rocks have accumulated at the bottom of the lake. This silt substance, or simply mud, has identical healing properties with water, because it is enriched with the same minerals and microelements, biologically active substances, organic and inorganic compounds, micro and macroelements, and so on.

Having a soft oily structure, the mud is easy to apply to the skin, and after the procedure is just as easy to wash off. The properties of the Dead Sea mud are versatile, and it is simply impossible to overestimate their effect on the human body. The mud perfectly cleanses the skin of dead scales, giving a rejuvenating effect, disinfects and cleans pores, while saturating it with useful microelements. Having low thermal conductivity, it is able to maintain a temperature gradient for a long time, which contributes to deep heating, and, consequently, more effective penetration of useful substances into various layers of the skin. A special finely dispersed fractional structure also helps in this. It enhances the positive effect of the properties of the Dead Sea mud (for example, the size of a particle of silt in the Black Sea is approximately 140 microns, while in a salt lake it does not exceed 45).

Thanks to this, all the main functions of the epidermis are normalized and become more balanced.

The healing properties of Dead Sea mud

Scientists classify the mud formations of this natural layer as chlorine-magnesium-calcium. The healing properties of Dead Sea mud are due to the various salts it contains. These are salts of potassium, lithium, magnesium, zinc, sodium, copper, calcium, bromine, cobalt, iron... As well as a significant concentration of minerals such as quartz, kaolin, feldspar, bentonite and many others.

Today, black mud from the coastline or from the depths of the sea is actively and with excellent effect used for the treatment of:

  • Diseases of the skin.
  • Diseases of connective tissue, bone tissue and joints.
  • Diseases of the field of pulmonology and ENT organs.
  • The relaxing effect on receptors normalizes some deviations associated with the functioning of the nervous system: depression, irritability, stress, and others.
  • The healing properties of Dead Sea mud also contribute to:
  • Activation of blood circulation.
  • Positive impact on the human central nervous system, effectively combating insomnia and fatigue.
  • Improving metabolism and stimulating metabolic processes.
  • Smoothing wrinkles, making facial skin more elastic.
  • Slowing down the aging process.
  • Makes hair roots stronger, successfully combats diseases such as dandruff and seborrhea.
  • Relieves some types of headaches and migraines.

And the latest medical research confirms this.

During the procedure, the mud is applied to the affected or bothersome area for 20 minutes, wrapped in cling film or a simple towel. After the allotted time has passed, the mud is washed off with warm water.

If psoriasis has affected the scalp, it is better to add salicylic ointment to the mud used - a quarter of the total volume.

For cosmetic purposes of using the properties of the Dead Sea, it is advisable to add a small amount of olive or any other aromatic oil to the mud.

Properties of Dead Sea Minerals

In addition to salts, the waters of the Salt Sea contain a huge number of ions of magnesium, lithium, iodine, potassium, sulfur, calcium, magnesium, sodium and many others. The composition of the water is unique in that it contains almost the entire periodic table, some elements and compounds are found in sufficient quantities only here. The properties of the minerals of the Dead Sea are multifaceted, as is its composition. Therefore, it is possible to consider some of them.

Potassium. Even every schoolchild knows that a person consists of 70% water. And the body's task is to preserve it, to maintain the water-salt balance. This is precisely the main job of potassium - maintaining the intracellular water balance, while another element, sodium, which is contained in sufficient quantities in the water of the Dead Sea, is responsible for normalizing the quantitative component of the intercellular fluid. It is also responsible for the normal functioning of the body's muscles.

Magnesium. This water contains the largest amount of it. This element is akin to a nuclear reactor, the energy of which starts and maintains the main metabolic and exchange processes in the human body. Magnesium is irreplaceable in the functioning of the central nervous system, the muscular system. It takes part in the normalization of the balance of cellular fluid and the conversion of sugar in human plasma into energy. Glucose metabolism, protein production and oxidation of fatty acids, normalization of pressure by a beneficial effect on the walls of blood vessels.

Sulfur. This element is directly involved in vitamin diffusion processes. Its deficiency is especially noticeable for biotin and thiamine. It works to increase immunity. It is a component of nail, hair and skin tissues.

Iodine. It is simply impossible to imagine the work of our body without it. Its participation is simply necessary in the functioning of almost all enzyme systems. Anti-inflammatory and antimicrobial action. The main enzyme of the thyroid gland is 60% iodine. If you remember the first expeditions to the North Pole - iodine deficiency (scurvy) - how many lives were taken by this disease.

Sodium. Maintains the fluid balance in the intercellular space of the body. Is a transport vehicle for nutrients. Participates in muscle work. Its sufficient amount in the body is an effective prevention of hypertension.

Iron. Hemoglobin - this enzyme is directly related to the presence of sufficient iron in the blood. This is the transport of oxygen to every cell of the body, protein synthesis, normal functioning of muscle tissue. Iron deficiency leads to iron deficiency anemia, which is caused by the failure of all systems of the human body.

Copper. Direct participant in the process of production of red blood cells and collagen. Without copper, the synthesis of skin enzymes is impossible. Its presence allows to reduce the time of iron processing. Without copper, the normal functioning of the vascular system and connective tissues is impossible.

Zinc. Without this component, protein synthesis and many enzymes are impossible. It is involved in the transfer of genetic information. Zinc is indispensable in recovery processes: wound healing, hair and nail growth. For men, it ensures the normal functioning of the prostate gland. With its deficiency in the body, skin lesions begin to heal poorly, wounds rot. With a lack of zinc in babies, they begin to lag behind in development.

Manganese. This element is simply irreplaceable in cellular respiration, oxidation processes of fatty acids, protein synthesis. Metabolism, exchange, immune and energy processes. All this is impossible with a lack of manganese.

Cobalt. Participates in the synthesis of red blood cells. Is an active component of vitamin B12. Cobalt deficiency can lead to the development and progression of pernicious anemia, the last stage of which is acute leukemia (a severe blood disease).

Selenium. This element also contributes to the properties of Dead Sea minerals. Selenium works to minimize the risk of cardiovascular pathology. It is an active assistant in the fight against cancer. The element is necessary for normal blood supply to the skin.

Fluorine. Its deficiency leads to problems with bone tissue: bone fractures, poor dental health. It takes part in metabolic processes. Fluorine deficiency in children leads to improper development of the child's body.

Calcium. It acts as an excellent antidepressant on a person, increases the body's immune defense. It has an antihistamine effect.

Bromine. Has antifungal, antibacterial, antiviral action. Beneficial effect on the nervous system, tones muscle activity. Has a significant effect on the thyroid and sex glands.

Chlorine. The dominant element responsible for normalizing osmotic pressure. Participates in regeneration and excretion processes, maintains the water-electrolyte ratio of cells that form the skin and subcutaneous fat layer.

Silicon. The chemical substance is irreplaceable in preventive measures aimed at maintaining the musculoskeletal system. It slows down the aging process, slows down the development of atherosclerosis. It works great for the regeneration of nails and hair.

The description of the elements clearly shows the properties of the Dead Sea, which help to revive many functions of the human body. The treatment gives an impetus to a more active and high-quality life.

Useful properties of Dead Sea minerals

To date, the presence of 21 minerals in the waters of the Dead Sea has been identified and confirmed. Most of the minerals have an inorganic structure (they do not contain oxygen, carbon or hydrogen). This structure of the chemical lattice protects against oxidation, preserving useful properties for many years. Many of the minerals have lipophilic properties that allow detoxification of the epidermis, removing toxins and other substances harmful to its functioning from the human body. This procedure makes the skin elastic, firm and fresh.

Numerous studies have been conducted, based on the use of the latest equipment and monitoring of clinical manifestations. They have clearly confirmed the beneficial properties of Dead Sea minerals. This has also been recognized by academic medicine.

  • Rheumatism, bursitis and arthritis.
  • Headaches and neuritis.
  • Inflammatory processes of various origins.
  • Stress and insomnia.
  • Rhinitis, tonsillitis, laryngitis...
  • Multiple skin diseases including psoriasis and eczema.

This is far from a complete list of diseases treated. The beneficial properties of Dead Sea minerals are also manifested in the rejuvenating effect that appears when using cosmetics made on their basis. The body receives a natural peeling: cleansing of the pores of the skin, exfoliation of dead scales, while moisturizing and saturating the deep layers of the skin and subcutaneous tissue with nutrients.

While large pharmaceutical and cosmetic companies are struggling with chemical compounds that are ready to defeat this or that disease or return former youth, nature has done everything itself. It has created such a unique phenomenon as this lake. The properties of the Dead Sea are vast, as is the composition of its water. All we have to do is take what is offered to us.

The Dead Sea is a treasure given to us by nature!

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